FTW Ranch Podcast

Once a year the FTW Ranch hosts the "P.H. (Professional Hunter) Invitational" and invites hunting guides from all over the world to collaborate with us. The intention is to complete the circle of communication between the training house and the field. It's become a wonderful opportunity to confirm the skills and techniques we teach our hunters with the expertise the guides bring to the field. The last thing you want to do is go on a hunt and have a guide tell you all the training you did to prepare was wrong. Doug is a videographer for Safari Classics and has been filming these hunts all over the world for his entire professional career. His unique insight as a fly on the wall observing the dynamics between hunters and guides is really special. This will be the last episode of the 1st season for the FTW Ranch Podcast. We will be taking a break for awhile but want to give a BIG THANK YOU to all of the guests for sharing their stories and all of the listeners for joining me on this adventure. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have. Thank you. 

TeShawn is a wildlife and hunting videographer who joined us at the FTW Ranch to partake in the fun of our SAAM New Hunter course. The opportunity in a New Hunter class to capture the entire spectrum of the hunting experience made for a perfect chance for any videographer to participate in the fun. The first few days focus on precision shooting, they get to hunt the mornings/evenings, and then Josh arrives to teach a professional necropsy class that ends with homemade sausage from the Field to the Fork. TeShawn didn't grow up hunting, this has been a passion and adventure he's undertaken as an adult. Join us as he describes what that journey has meant to him and what he's learned from stepping out of his comfort zone to meet new people and test himself in new ways. Thanks for listening. 

If you've been hearing about and wondering what's the deal with the new 7mm PRC, 6.5 PRC, 300 PRC, and finally the 6ARC... Well here you go. Jayden Quinlan is Hornady's Lead Ballistician and he explained to my the why behind this new cartridge family. You won't want to miss the details of this discussion. Enjoy!

Christy is known on social media as The Queen of Gator, her family owns an alligator tannery in Louisiana. She came to the FTW for a week of training and luckily agreed to share her story with me about the hardships they've faced in preserving their right to manage the conservation of these beautiful animals. She won a lawsuit against the state of California who attempted to ban all sales of alligator leather in their state. A decision that could have completely destroyed the conservation management that keeps their habitats protected. You can find her on Instagram @QueenofGator where you can see the amazing work they do. 

Originally from Johannesburg South Africa, Dr. Robert "Robbie" Kroger, was the Chief Scientific Officer for Covington Civil and Environmental and is now the Executive Director of Blood Origins. Blood Origins is simple in its execution - create content that conveys the truth around hunting and hunters around the world to the non-hunting majority. Robbie gives a voice to hunters by taking on the anti-hunting mob and disrupting their false narrative with the hard facts of conservation. He's highly educated, articulate, and a force to be reckoned with as an environmental subject matter expert. Its a good one, ENJOY! 

Leo is Tim Fallon's grandson.  For graduation last summer, Leo was shipped off to Africa to spend his summer in Mozambique working with killer bees, anti-poaching, building roads, assisting the safari guides in conservation and game management. It was the summer of every young man's dreams and he does a great job telling it. 

Nick and Jon, from Leupold, joined us at the FTW for a week of steel therapy. Nick is very active with the competitive shooting team and showing the world how well their optics work while Jon is behind the scenes figuring out what shooters want and how to build it. Jon's latest baby, the Mk5 2-10x30. If you've ever wondered about the magic of bending light, scattering it through a lens, and gathering it back again just so you can reach out to 1000 yards and ring steel, Jon will tell you... Thanks for listening! 

I had another educational discussion with some wonderful people that Swarovski sent out to the ranch for some hands-on time with their optics. Jase, Grey, and Hunter were all very knowledgeable and excited to learn  the skills of the long range shooting game, hone their accuracy for their own personal growth, and share their experiences this week at the FTW with us. Swarovski has put a lot of work into staying at the top of their game and answering the call of the consumer. We had a great time while learning occurred. Wish you were there. 

I had a great opportunity to work with Leica Optics at the ranch recently and sit down with Ryan Trenka to talk about them. Historically Leica has remained focused on the European scope market, which has some uniquely different consumer requests than the American market. That trend is no more and Ryan brought a big group of shooters and a truck full of scopes to prove it this week! Thanks for listening :) 

Another great week of training with the guys from Ruger and other hunters from around the country. Karl won the latest Man-cation lottery from Ruger and Bryan is a 20 year  hunting and fishing guide in Colorado. Lessons were learned, powder was burned, and the bar was loud :) 

This week I got to sit down with the CEO of Silencer Central, Brandon Maddox, to peek behind the curtain of the infamous SILENCER! A scary assassin's tool or the signature of a civilized man? The ATF has done no favors for the consumer to streamline the process of purchasing one but this is where Brandon has stepped up. He doesn't call himself the Amazon of Silencer's for nothing and you can quite literally have it delivered to your door.  ENJOY!Book Recommendation: How to Win Friends and Influence People- Dale CarnegieThe Wealthy Barber- David Chilton

The Mountain Hunter Challenge is the last opportunity to humble yourself at the ranch. It's a steep hike up the hill to the Crusader Range where each shooter gets one opportunity to hit a target at 515 yards. If you hit, you get your time logged into the "God Book". If you miss, better luck next time... Join me, Clayton and Sloan from West Texas Ordinance, and Clayton (Fake News) from Simmons Sporting Goods. 

Matt Wilson works for Ruger and accompanied a big group for a product testing event at the ranch. Among the toys we had that week was the 7mm PRC and their SFAR (Small Frame Autoloading Rifle). If the hype about the 7mm PRC or the existence of a 7lb AR chambered in 308/6.5CM excites you, then this one is for you. 

Bruce and Lisa dropped by the ranch for their first SAAM class! Bruce is highly involved with the Dallas Safari Club and helping them expand their chapters in the Colorado region. His wife Lisa moonlights as his partner in business and they manage a number of hunting operations hosting guests both locally and abroad. We had a great time talking about the technical skills involved in the hunt and the social reward we all feel from those connections. Thanks for listening!Bruce book recommendations: Little Big Things by Tom Peters and basically anything by Cameron Haynes. Zac book recommendation: The 40 Laws of the Alpha Male 

We had a great week with Swarovski/Kahles who sent out some fantastic shooters for a social media event. The equipment was top notch, the shooters were more than capable, and the competition that ensued kept us all laughing. Phil is a Marine Scout Sniper,  world class competitive shooter, and a partner of Modern Day Sniper.  Zack is a dedicated mountain goat who climbs the ridge lines in search of adventure and product testing some of the best backpacking equipment on the market by Stone Glacier. Evan is a Swarovski rep who has combined his hobbies and work life beautifully. The three of them at the FTW sounded like a concert of epileptics playing AC/DC with the handbells. It was glorious. 

Charles and Rebecca (Becca) came to the FTW Ranch between hunts. Charles had just got back from Ethiopia and Becca was joining him on their way to Namibia the following week. Charles had plans to chase some of Africa's "Big 5" and attended our SAAM Safari Course to prepare. 

We are pleased to introduce Dean and Jason from Swarovski! I ran into them at the Dallas Safari Club show back in January and learned  just how long and how deep the romance flows between FTW and Swarovski. I'm still pretty green at The Ranch but they were eager to share their story and it always makes me feel like I'm back in the lodge. Join me as we dive into the mission of a premium optics maker, how they met Tim Fallon, and what brings them out to the FTW Ranch every quarter. Spoiler alert, they come for the food and  just tolerate the company ;) This podcast is meant to inform and entertain, these are just the opinions of the people speaking, and always do your own research.

Ruger has held a long tradition of rotating their employees through the FTW Ranch. In this episode we got to capture one of those events! Mattew Osborne, Griffin Seidler, and Eric Abens will talk about their roles at Ruger, the purpose behind the tradition that brought them to the FTW, how their training went, and Griffin's first elk hunt. This podcast is meant to inform and entertain, these are just the opinions of the people speaking, and always do your own research.

Aaron is new to the FTW crew having joined the roster at the end of  2021 around the same time as Zac. He is a Recon Marine and Scout Sniper that likes to shoot rifle competitions between hunting seasons.Fair warning! Somewhere around the 27 minute mark there is a guest appearance from Dave Knesek who shares a dirty joke about a woodpecker. If you know Dave, you know... 

Dave is a seasoned hunter who has made his passion a career. He is the co-owner of Safari Classics Productions and has produced some of the most popular hunting shows on television like Tracks Across Africa. He's been coming to the FTW Ranch for years to train, test equipment, and partake in the community that the ranch has become. To learn more about Dave and Safari Classics follow this link: https://www.safariclassics.net/tv/